An official medical report classified Rimsha as "uneducated" with a mental age younger than her years. Some reports have also claimed that she has Down's Syndrome.

Under Pakistan's strict blasphemy laws, burning a sacred text is punishable with life imprisonment.

Blasphemy is a very sensitive subject in Pakistan, where 97% of the 180 million population are Muslims and allegations of insulting Islam or the prophet Mohammed often prompt a furious public reaction.